


unforgettable

by gillovnygirl



Category: The X-Files RPF
Genre: AU, F/M, Gillovny
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-08
Updated: 2016-12-18
Packaged: 2018-09-07 05:52:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8785618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gillovnygirl/pseuds/gillovnygirl
Summary: If Gillian lost her memory would her heart still recognize David? Was he unforgettable?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is an AU.
> 
> Piper is Gillian only child and Gillian had been living in New York for a few months now.

Spring in NY had always been beautiful. There's always a lot of sun and it rarely rained. She loved their late mornings in bed, when he made her coffee and pancakes - that were actually pretty good even though that and sandwiches and smoothies were the only things we could make- and they had breakfast in bed. And this morning were no different from it.

They were both on his bed- that over time they'd started calling it their bed even tho Gillian had her own bed in her own apartment in New York. David was reading New York Times while Gillian was going through the messages she had received from people who were working at one of her charities. Even though they were having their alone time, reading different stuff, they were still together. She rested her head on his chest and his left arm was around her waist. That's what she loved so much about them and their relationship. They were both very busy people with different work to do but they always managed to be together while doing it. There had been times that she'd flown to New York and had written great parts of her book sitting next to him, at his living room table while he worked on his book too, allowing themselves a few glances and caresses here and there.

“They wrote something about Bucky Fucking Dent being one of the best novels of 2016. ” He broke the silence, which wasn't uncomfortable at all. They were so comfortable with each other they could spend hours together without talking that it wouldn't be awkward.

“Wow. Is my boyfriend getting famous?” She teased. She shifted in his arms to be able to read the paper. He chuckled and kissed the top of her head.

“Let me read that.” She took the paper off his hands and began to read the article. He watched how her face lit up with pride and it warmed his heart. She was really the best thing he could have ever asked for.

After finishing reading her e-mails she decided it was time to get out of bed. He had told her he wanted to take her out for lunch and she intended to be ready on time.

“I'm gonna take a shower.” She pecked him on the lips and quickly disappeared into the bathroom. He just smiled and continued his reading.

She lazily took off her pajamas, aka his over-sized t-shirt and a thong. She loosened her messy ponytail and turned on the hot water before stepping inside the tub. The warm water felt good on her skin, helping to heal the back pain from last night's activities with David. They were getting old now but still fucking as if they were in their thirties.

She just let the water wash the now dry sweat on her skin for a few moments before she reached down to get the shampoo and that's when it happened.

***

 

“Let me go with her! Let me go!.. She needs me.” His lasts words came out in a whisper that only the doctor that was holding him back could hear. He watched as she disappeared, laying on a stretcher, into one of those rooms, doctors never let the families in and his heart break at the sight.

“I'm sorry, Sir. You can't get in there. They're going to take good care of her, please trust me.” The doctor said trying to calm him down, unsuccessfully. He guided David to the nearest hospital bench and made him sit down. He was sure if he didn't he'd collapse.

Eventually the doctor had to get back to work leaving David alone with his thoughts in the waiting room.

 

_“Babe what are you doing in there? Is everything okay?” He asked without taking his eyes off his phone. He was now reading an online article about a 3-day avocado detox. He actually need it after having ingested huge amounts of sugar because of the sweets Gillian kept bringing home for both of them._

_As he got no answer he decided to call for her again. This time he'd already put his phone on the nightstand “Gillian?”_

_Still no answer. He hurried himself into bathroom and froze for a few seconds before running to the bathtub where she was laying unconscious with the shower curtain around her body._

_Seeing that she wasn't waking up, he ran to the bedroom, picked up his phone and went straight back to her side. He didn't want her to leave her alone, not even for a second. He dialed 911 but wasn't able to say more than a few words which he didn't even know if made sense all together- “My girlfriend”, “bathtub”, “unconscious”, “her head”, “I think she hit her head.”, “oh god”._

_The woman who'd answered his call said that he shouldn't try to move her, that if he did it could make her injuries worse. The paramedics would do their job once they arrived. But they were taking so fucking long, he thought. He finally remembered that he couldn't get out of the house just in his boxers, not that he cared about the way he looked right now, but he had to put something more on._

_By the time he'd gotten dressed the paramedics were knocking at his door. Finally, he thought. He let them in and then guided them into the bathroom. When they saw her they both looked at him and their eyes showed sympathy for him. As he was seeing them carrying her onto the stretcher he felt helpless. He wished he could have done something to help her. He wished he could have done something to prevent her from falling down. But now, all he could do, was be there and hold her hand._

The sound of the doctor's voice brought him back. He got up quickly and asked what her state was. “She's had a severe concussion. It sometimes causes a temporary loss of brain function and that's why she's lost consciousness. We gave her some pain killers, morphine, so that, hopefully, when she wakes up, her head won't hurt as much. But we still don't know what her state's going to be. Traumatic brain injuries can cause just bruising but also damage to the blood vessels, and injury to the nerves. We'll call you when she wakes up, Mr.-?”

"Duchovny.” He sighed. He didn't care if the doctor knew his name or not. He just cared about her and her health. “So...is she going to be okay?” He looked at him with such fear in his eyes the doctor felt his pain too.

“We'll know when she wakes up, what should be in a few hours. I'm sorry but that's the best answer I can give you right now.” David just nodded and watched the doctor walk away, leaving him alone once again.

He decided to call Piper and inform her about what had happened to her mother. He didn't want to worry her but she had the right to know so he picked up his phone from his back pocket and gave the horrible news to the girl. She was on a break from university so she'd decided to come and visit her mom that no longer lived in London. She took the opportunity she was in town to meet some friends she hadn't seen in a while.

He had been at the hospital for over an hour when he saw Piper walking up to him as fast as she could. He managed a small smile and quickly got up and took her in his arms when he realized she was crying. "It's okay Pips. It's okay. I am here.” He said as he hugged her tighter and kissed the top of her head. He had never seen her cry like that. In fact, he had never seen her cry at all.

Where is she? When can we see her?” She asked desperate, looking around as if looking for her mother.

"I don't know. The doctor said he'd call me when she woke up.”

"What if-” She said with a tremble in her voice and with tears in her eyes once again.

"Hey. It's not like that, kiddo. The doctor said she should wake up in a few hours. We just have to wait a little longer, okay?” He had put one hand in her shoulder, reassuringly. He made her sit on the bench while he went to buy some food and water for both of them. He hadn't eaten all morning.

 

_"You're going to be okay sweetheart, you hear me? You're going to be okay. You have to, you know why? We still have a lot of things to do together. We have to finish decorating your new apartment. We have to walk the dogs together every day. We have to jog together every morning. God, I finally convinced you to jog with me...can you believe it? Gillian I-don't-exercise Anderson is going to jog with me. You're listening to me, babe? We have that and so much more to do together. We still have to...to get married...yes, I want to marry you. I want to marry you so bad, Gillian Leigh Anderson. I love you so much. Please be good to me. Please just be okay.” He was sobbing, his head rested on the free space of the stretcher she was lying on. His hand was holding hers so tight his fingers had become yellow. He didn't want to let go. He didn't want to ever let go._

_"We're here Sir. We're at the hospital.”_

 

"David. David!” Piper had to shake him for him to listen to her.

"What? What happened?” His mind came back to the present moment and he was now totally focused on Piper. She stood up and that's when he saw that the doctor was there too.

"She's awake, David. Mom is awake.” She said way happier than a couple of hours ago. They hugged and David finally let out the breath he'd been holding all morning.

"Can we go see her now?” He quickly let go of Piper and turned to the doctor.

 

"That's what I was trying to say to your daughter, Mr. Duchovny. She is awake but...She's suffering from some kind of amnesia. It's quite an unusual for a concussion to cause memory loss but it's possible and it's happening to your wife. When I asked her if she knew her name she said it was Gillian but when I asked her what she did for a living she didn't know. I asked her how old she was, she said she wasn't sure. I'm sorry. I'm sure the amnesia won't last long since she can remember certain details about her life but it won't go away as fast as you and she certainly want.

They were so shocked by what the doctor had told them they didn't even care to correct him. She surely wasn't his daughter and Gillian wasn't his wife...yet, but that didn't matter at the moment. The most important person of their lives was suffering from amnesia...amnesia! They couldn't believe it.

What if she had forgotten about one of them? What if she had forgotten how she was like and turned into a whole different person? No, it couldn't be- they thought.

 

"You are allowed to go see her now. Maybe one at a time. We don't want to shock her. We still don't know what and who she remembers.” They just nodded, not being able to say a word. It was, after all, a lot to take in.

"Another thing before you go. It's better if you try not to fulfill the gaps...what I mean is you shouldn't try to make her remember what she doesn't. It's bad for the brain and can actually make it worse for her to gain back her memory. If you overload the brain with loads of new information it can erase the one that's still there. I know it's hard but she's going to get her memory back, eventually.”

"Ok.” Piper said.

"We understand.”, David.

 

Piper went in first. She was scared, she was so scared her mother wouldn't recognize her and for a moment she'd thought she didn't. Her face was more pale than usual and she had dark circles around her eyes. The back of her head was extremely swollen.

Her daughter walked up at her and stopped beside her bed. Gillian's eyelids drooped and paused, then opened wide. “Hey.” She tried to sit up but immediately regretted it as the pain she felt almost made her pass out.

"You need to say laid. Don't try to get up, please.” Piper asked, holding her mom's hand. Gillian just nodded.

"You're Piper. You're my child.” It wasn't a question but a statement. Piper smiled, happy that her mother remembered her. “I just don't have any memory of us together. I can't remember spending time with you. I just...Fuck. I just remember your face. Oh my god. Fuck. I am so sorry.” Gillian had her eyes closed and tears were streaming down her face.

"Hey, it's okay. The doctor said you'll remember everything soon, okay? Don't you worry about it.” She offered her a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. One thing was hearing someone saying that her mother didn't remember some stuff, other completely different was her mother saying that the only thing she remembered about her child was her face and name.

 

"My head hurts so much. Oh god.” As she said that the nurse that was supervising Gillian increased the quantity of the intravenous morphine she was receiving “Thank you.” Gillian said and after a few moments her body began to relax, clearly due to the painkiller.

 

"You can get in there, now. If you want.” The doctor reassured David that had been watching mother and daughter interact for 20 minutes now through the small window next to the door. He took a deep breath and opened it.

Piper immediately turned to look at him and smiled. David smiled back at her. He was nervous but at the same time was relieved to see her awake. The image of her laying in his bathtub unconscious was one he was sure he could never forget.

Gillian finally sensed his presence in the room and opened her eyes to look up at him, a confused look on her face. “Who are you?


	2. Chapter 2

He'd been staring at the framed photograph he had on his living room's shelf for god knew how long. They had taken it just a few months ago in Vancouver or her birthday. She looked beautiful. She wore a sleeveless summer dress with a flower pattern . Her hair was flowing past her shoulders in waves and soft curls. She was slightly tanned and had more freckles than he'd ever seen her having. He wished he had kissed them all that day. One by one. But he didn't. He wished he had proposed to her that day. But he didn't.

_“David?” She squeezed his hand to make him look at her. They were taking a walk by the seaside while Piper, West and Miller were swimming. He brought his gaze to her and they both smiled instantly. They were having some pretty amazing vacations. They had never felt happier._

_“I have a surprise for you...for your birthday.” She said shyly and stopped walking, making him stop too._

_“Babe my birthday was two days ago and I really liked what you got me.” He grinned at her and rested his hands on her waist, making their lower bodies press against each other._

_“Well, I think you'll like this one better.” She untangled her arms from his neck and began to look for something in her purse. He arched his eyebrow in curiosity and checked on their kids, that were still on the water, while she tried to find his present. When he looked back at her she was nervously holding a key between her thumb and her index finger._

_“What does it open?” He took the key from her hand and examined it._

_“It opens my front door.”_

_“I already have a key to your house.” He stated, confused._

_“No, silly.” She chuckled. “It's a key to my new apartment. In New York.” Her eyes tried to meet his. She didn't know why but she was nervous. They'd been talking about her moving there since last May, when she was doing Streetcar and lived with him for the whole three months. When it was time to go home they both cried and held each other, already thinking about how much they'd miss the domesticity they'd shared. Since that day she knew she couldn't live oceans apart from him anymore. She just couldn't._

_As soon as he heard the words that came out of her mouth and understood what they meant he took her in his arms and kissed every inch of skin he could reach. “Oh god, Gillian.” He sighed in contentment and inhaled the scent of her before letting go._

_“So you're happy?” She asked, already knowing the answer. A slight grin on her face._

_“Are you fucking kidding me? I've never been happier.” And with that, he took her purse from her hand and let it fall to the sand. He then picked her up and started running towards the water._

Piper took a picture of them later that day. They were still at the beach, holding hands and looking at each other adoringly. That's the picture he had in his living room. That's the picture he was now putting away on a box, together with the other memories of their love.

“Who are you?” Had he heard that right? Had she forgotten about him? Her question took a while to be answered. Both Piper and David were shocked. They couldn't believe she had forgotten about him.

“You don't remember David? He's-” She was about to tell her the truth, that David was the man she was and had always been in love with, but David didn't let her finish.

“I'm a friend.” He hurried, earning a 'what-are-you-doing' glance from Piper.

“Whose friend?” Gillian asked, sensing the tension in the room.

“Yours.”, Piper.

“Piper's.”, David.

As they said different things at the same time Gillian got even more confused than she already was. Piper raised her eyebrow to David.  _What is he doing_? She wanted to scream at him but when she looked in eyes all she could see was sadness and pain. Poor David, she thought and decided to let him take the wheel in whatever they were going to do about her mother's state. Piper sighed and nodded, looking at him, letting him know that she had his back. David cleared his throat.

“I believe I'm friends with you both.” She looked over at Piper as if wanting her confirmation.

“David is our friend and he's here to help me taking care of you.” She explained to her mother whose cheeks were beginning to get run as they did when she was about to start an argument. David knew what it was about. He stepped closer to them, stopping beside Piper.

“We know you don't need no one to take care of you. You can take good care of yourself. We'll just make sure you get everything you need to fully recover.” They both watched as Gillian relaxed hearing his words. Piper chuckled to herself. He really did knew how to handle her mother like no one did.  _Even now_.

“Ok. I'm sorry, what's your name again?” She seemed pleased he was treating her like the independent woman she was and even managed a small smile.

“David.” He sighed and swallowed hard, trying really hard to hold back the tears.

 

The following days ran by quickly. Gillian's injuries were healing, even if slowly, and as she was feeling less and less pain everyday the doctor reduced the dose of morphine she had been taking. He had been visiting her twice a day, one in the morning and one in the evening. In the morning, he usually passed by just to chat a bit with her, to know how she was feeling and if she needed anything. In the evening he ran some tests to check on her brain activity and how it was- or wasn't- evolving everyday.

David had refused to leave the hospital. To leave her. He had been there for over 48 hours straight when Piper and Gillian's doctor, finally, convinced him to go home. He needed to shower and rest. He did as he was told. He went home, fed himself properly, which he hadn't done since he arrived at the hospital, then he went to see his kids and Brick. But he couldn't sleep. Not more than a couple of hours anyway. He couldn't stop looking at _the picture_  .

Piper had gone home in those two nights he'd stayed at the hospital. But this night she decided to stay there with her mother. She didn't want to leave her alone either.

In the last two days Gillian hadn't wanted to talk to anyone, really talk. She allowed Piper and David to join her for lunch and dinner but during the rest of the day she'd always asked to be alone.

She felt lost. She knew her name and her age. She knew she had a beautiful 21-year-old daughter who lived in London. She knew she had a friend named David that was extremely attractive. She knew she was an actress. But the thing was...she didn't remember living. Giving birth to her daughter or spending time with her. She certainly didn't remember meeting David or acting. She didn't remember anything. She'd tried to ask several things to Piper and David even knowing that they wouldn't tell her a single thing. The doctor had been really clear about how the process of remembering worked. Piper actually answered one of her questions once but Gillian didn't recall anything she'd just been told and the all that new information just made her feel like someone was stabbing her in the temples. After that episode she just gave up on asking.

“Mom, can we get in?” Piper asked, opening the door to Gillian's room. David had just gotten back from home and desperately wanted to see how she was doing. Piper too so there they were.

“Gillian?”, David.

“Come in.” She sighed an then braced herself against the headboard.

“How are you feeling today?” Piper kissed her cheek before sitting down on a chair next to the hospital bed. David did the same but had to fight the urge to kiss her right on the lips. _Oh god, how much he missed those full red lips_. Once his lips touched her cheek she felt shivers down her spine. He then sat on the chair that was beside Piper's and, when he wasn't looking, Gillian touched the skin that had been kissed by him. She cussed something to herself when she realized it was hot. She was blushing.

 She just shrugged her shoulders and stared at the blank screen of the TV.

“I brought you chocolate. That dark chilli chocolate you were talking about yesterday.” He watched as her eyes lit up and a grin formed on her lips.

“You did? That's so sweet. You didn't have to!” She looked up at him desperately waiting for her treat. It was only her third day at the hospital and she was already fed up with its food. They didn't allow her to drink Coke or to eat sushi or burgers.. She wasn't even sure she could eat chocolate but she didn't care. Wasn't it said that chocolate stimulated the brain? Well, she needed all the help she could get.

“Didn't I really? You couldn't shut up about it yesterday. I'm sure if I didn't bring it you'd kick our asses.” He pointed to him and then to Piper, grinning. She mirrored his expression, happy with herself for making him smile. He had beautiful features, from his small but amazing hazel eyes to his large nose that unexpectedly fitted him perfectly. But what she liked the most about his face were his lips. She'd watched the way he'd bitten his lower lip every time the doctor had got in the room with the test results. He must really care about me, she'd thought.

“Either way, thank you. You've made my day.” She tried to take the chocolate off his hands but he playfully slapped her hand, to stop her, only to caress it seconds later.

“Hey!! You can only have one square. I've asked Doctor Andrew.” He said firmly but his eyes were filled with love. She smiled shyly looking at their hands touching and felt herself blushing, again.

“I've been eating just soup and disgusting jelly for three days. I deserve four squares of my favourite chocolate! Come on.” She whined and pouted, hoping that he'd fall for it. She looked so cute. Oh if he could just kissed her.

“That's impossible. Two squares. Take it or leave it.” He said playfully but pretending to be serious and she knew so. It wouldn't be just another piece more of chocolate that would harm her. He was just enjoying this little game they were playing.

“Three squares!” She bit her lip and waited for his next move. She was too enjoying this sort of teasing. It came out unexpectedly natural as if they were used to do it everyday- and weren't they.

“Okay. Fine. You win. Here it is.” He chuckled to himself and began to unwrap the chocolate for her. No matter what it was about, she always got her away.

Piper had been merely watching them interact. She'd been smiling the whole time. It was just amazing to see unbelievable chemistry and sparks flying. To watch two souls connecting and unconditional and unselfish love existing. They did have it all. It wasn't neither just a mental connection nor just a physical one. It was both but it went way beyond that. They were some type of heaven's matchmaking. Whatever she lacked he had too much of and the other way around.

“Thank you.” She smiled politely and took it from his hand, their fingers brushing slightly against each other, making her realize how much she'd missed his touch. She chewed on her tiny piece of chocolate as if she hadn't eaten candy in years. She didn't know they had been eating crap all week.

After she finished her chocolate all the three of them decided to watch one of the films Piper had brought from Gillian's apartment- 'Its a wonderful life', one of her favourites- as well as her laptop, so that they could watch it.

Piper had been studying her mom's face through the whole film. She was hoping to see her eyes widening or a hand covering her mouth in shock. She hoped for a sign that she'd remembered all those Sunday afternoons the two of them spent together watching her favourite film. But that sign never came.

“Are you ok?” Piper reached out for her hand and Gillian interlaced their fingers together, making Piper smile.

“Yeah. It's just... so beautiful.” She said, wiping away her tears with the back of her free hand.

“I think...I think I've seen it before. I already knew George was going to run to the bridge and beg for his life back before he did it.” Piper grinned at David and noticed he was holding back his tears.

Yes it was beautiful, and sad. The way the main character had felt when his mother didn't recognize him was the same way he was feeling at the moment. Although he hid it, not to worry Piper and not to confuse Gillian. Pretending not to love the woman of his life was slowly killing him. Every time he suppressed a thought of kissing her or every time he wished to tell her he loved her, he felt himself getting sicker and sicker. It was just anti-nature not doing those things.

The doctor knocked twice on the door before opening it. “Am I interrupting something?” He asked looking at a cry Gillian, an emotional Piper and a depressed David.

“Hey. We just finished watching a film.” Dr. Andrew brought the bag of her clothes David had picked and a bunch of papers with him. She was going to be discharged from the hospital.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm glad you liked the first chapter. Hopefully you liked this one too!
> 
> Please keep giving me feedback so I know if you like my writing and this story.
> 
> Thank you for leaving kuddos and comments. XX


End file.
